7 Luxury Stuffed Croissants & Where You Can Buy Them
Is there anything in a bakery that can top a croissant? Especially a freshly baked, golden brown croissant filled with some heavenly concoction. Sweet or savoury, filled and stuffed croissants are the ultimate treat: luxurious, Instagram worthy, and satiating. If you’re looking for the best filled croissants nationwide, these seven pastries and their respective bakeries will give you everything you need and more.
1. Roasted Mushroom Croissant: Radio Bakery, NYC
Usually, the first croissant on a stuffed croissant list would be something sweet, likely including something rich and delicious like chantilly cream or vanilla bean custard. What if we told you savory could be just as mouth-watering; though Radio Bakery has the sweet and sugary down to a fine art, the Roasted Mushroom croissant caught our attention. On the bakery’s Instagram, they tout this flaky, savory wonder as a new staff favourite. Bursting with slow-caramelized cremini mushrooms and shallots, which are combined with marsala and bechamel sauce for a creamy base, it’s also topped with crispy maitake (chicken of the woods) mushrooms for a little extra something. Finished off with a fig vincotto vinegar that adds a little tangy sweetness, it’s a highlight on the menu at the Greenpoint branch.
2. Sweet Croissant (Roasted Rhubarb, Pastry Cream, Oat Crisp Streusel): Sea Wolf Bakery, Seattle
Since the very first moment the spring crops started rolling in from the fields, the folks at Sea Wolf Bakery in Seattle have been buying all the Washington grown rhubarb they can to being the lucky public the wonder that is the Sweet Croissant. It’s a sensational concoction of classic laminated pastry generously filled with rhubarb from Sidhu Farms and a heavenly pastry cream. This is not just a croissant topped off with oatmeal streusel; it's a piece of Americana married to a French classic that never goes out of style. Thankfully, now that summer is here, more fruity fillings will be on bakery menus across the country. The Sea Wolf team is particularly partial to baking seasonally; instead of sourcing imported produce, they use the produce available in their area and as fresh as it comes because it’s based on what grows seasonally there.
3. Almond Croissant: Casa Bake, Miami
An almond croissant may seem like a simple choice, but trust us when we say that it can be life-changing if it's made well. Miami’s Casa Bake has managed to elevate the humble but already tasty almond croissant to the level of a god-tier pastry. It's a heavenly combination; a classic flaky croissant topped with slivers of almond and powdered sugar and filled with rich, sweet almond paste. One will not be enough, so get yourself at least a half dozen; your mouth, friends, and family will all thank you.
4. Love Bun Croissant (Lime Cream Cheese, Guava Glaze, and Graham Cracker Streusel): Love Croissants, Houston
Ever had a love affair with a pastry? We have! And so has the team at Love Croissants in Houston. The romance began when Omar Pereney (founder) threw himself into pastry making after working in other parts of the culinary world since a young age. Working passionately and precisely, Omar created Love Croissants, which now has a reputation in Houston as one of the best bakeries. It's no surprise that a bakery so committed to crafting divine little bites has created something as unique as the Love Bun: a flaky, traditional croissant knot overflowing with a sweet, lime-zesty cream cheese and topped with guava glaze and graham cracker streusel. The initial crunch and the inevitable sigh of contentment as the cream cheese mingles with the guava glaze make this unique pastry an ultimate treat.
5. Ube Halaya Croissant: Cafe Mochiko, Cincinnati
An Asian- american take on classic pastries that will go down in history, if we have our say. Everything about Cafe Mochiko screams “cute”, but their fare, the pastries in particular, aren't just lovely to look at: they're the best thing you’ll eat this year. One particular croissant stands out amongst the rest: the Ube Halaya Croissant. Filled with decadent yam jam in the classic ube shade of purple and graced with a generous dollop of sweet yam cream for added flavour, it's the cultural crossover treat we didn't know we needed.
6. Ham and Cheese Croissant: Lost Larson, Chicag
Ham and cheese come in many forms, some infinitely superior to others. As a croissant choice, this savoury treat is a mainstay for many fans of the buttery pastry (technically, croissants originated in Austria, though they are known worldwide as a French pastry!) It's easy to get it wrong. The mistake of using too sweet a cheese or the wrong kind of ham can leave the customer feeling like something was missing. Lucky for us, Lost Larson in Chicago folks are doing all the right things with their famous ham and cheese croissant. Stuffed with a sharp white cheddar and flavourful ham sourced from Smoking Goose Smokehouse (also a Chicago local), this isn't just a basic ham and cheese- it's an elevated take on a classic that will leave every mouth watering and every customer coming back for more.
7. Crannoli Croissant (Mascarpone Filling, Chocolate Dipped Sides, Pistachios): The Butter Milk Ranch, Nashville
The Butter Milk Ranch is a small batch bakery that prides itself on putting the most drool-worthy baked goods in buzzing Nashville directly into the hands of ravenous customers who line up around the block. One of their most bought sweet treats is the Crannoli Croissant. Filled with a cloud of creamy mascarpone, this croissant is modeled after the beloved Italian cannoli: the cigar-like pastry. In imitation, it's dipped in chocolate at both ends and smothered with pistachios for a little extra crunch. It's rich, chocolatey, and flavoured by the nutty crunch and crumble of crushed pistachios; could there be anything better?
Indulge Yourself, You Deserve it!
These seven bakeries with their seven hero croissants are the best. A party tasting road trip? A day trip to try the croissant of the century? We’ll leave the plans up to you, but trust us, you don't want to wait.